Punjab Kings team management has clarified that they did not acquire Shashank Singh by mistake during the Indian Premier League player auction. The 32-year-old batting allrounder, who formerly played for Sunrisers Hyderabad, was signed during the expedited round for 20 lakhs.
Punjab Kings co-owner Preity Zinta quickly raised the paddle as auctioneer Mallika Sagar announced Shashank Singh’s name, closing the purchase for INR 20 lakh. The Punjab Kings had confused Shashank Singh for another player, Tanay Thyagrajan, who was eventually identified and picked in the next round.
Despite the attention surrounding the incident, the Punjab Kings remain enthusiastic about Shashank Singh’s potential contributions to their club. While the incident caused a brief uproar, the team’s prompt clarification regarding their pick in the auction.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, PBKS stated that the Chhattisgarh all-rounder “was always on our target list” and that the confusion stemmed from two players with the same name on the roster.
“Punjab Kings would like to clarify that Shashank Singh was always on our target list. The confusion was due to 2 players of the same name being on the list. We are delighted to have him on board and see him contribute to our success.”
“Two players of similar names on the IPL list created confusion. I am delighted to share that the right Shashank Singh has been onboarded. He has put out some noteworthy performances, and we’re ready to unleash his talent”.
Shashank Singh was unsold in the previous mega auction. However, when Punjab Kings made an early attempt to sign the uncapped talent during the IPL 2024 auction, the stars appeared to be aligning in Shashank’s favour. When auctioneer Mallika Sagar shouted Shashank’s name during the mini-auction’s expedited round, he appeared to have PBKS’ attention.
Veteran Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan will captain Punjab Kings in the cash-rich league’s 2024 season. At the Dubai auction, the PBKS franchise paid a whopping INR 11.75 crore for Harshal Patel to acquire his services. PBKS also paid INR 4.20 crore for Chris Woakes, while Rilee Rossouw joined the Punjab franchise for INR 8 crore alongside picking up a few youngsters in the auction.
Meanwhile, Sanjay Bangar has been appointed PBKS’s Head of Cricket Development for the 2024 season. His IPL coaching career began in January 2014, when he was designated assistant coach for Kings XI Punjab. He has also worked with Royal Challengers Bangalore in recent years and would like to motivate the squad alongside Trevor Bayliss to their first IPL title in 2024.